The CEO of Under Armour responded Wednesday to the backlash he has received after he called President Trump “an asset to the country” in an interview last week.
CEO Kevin Plank said his choice of words during the CNBC interview “did not accurately reflect my intent.”
Plank, in an open letter to the Baltimore Sun that appeared as a full-page ad, said the company stands for opportunity, job creation and entrepreneurship.
“I personally believe that immigration is the foundation of our country’s exceptionalism,” the CEO of the Baltimore sports apparel company said.
Plank said the company opposes Trump’s immigration ban. “With an anticipated new executive order on immigration set to come out, we will join a coalition of companies in opposition to any new actions that negatively impact our team, their families or our community.
“We are taking other public positions on legislation around the country in support of the interests of our teammates whenever policy conflicts with human rights,” he said.
Trump signed the executive order on Jan. 27 that halts all immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries — Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen — for 90 days. The order also blocks all refugees from coming to the United States for 120 days. It has been halted by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals while the courts consider the merits of Washington state’s lawsuit against the immigration ban.
Under Armour ambassadors, actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, basketball star Stephen Curry and ballerina Misty Copeland publicly distanced themselves from Plank’s comments last week.
“His words were divisive and lacking in perspective” and created “a situation where the personal political opinions of UA’s partners and its employees were overshadowed by the comments of its CEO,” Johnson said.
Copeland said she appreciated the support and platform the company gave her, but “I strongly disagree with Kevin Plank’s recent comments in support of Trump as recently reported.”
